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Connecticut State Police Trooper Chris Sorrell and Pittsfield Police Sgt. Glen Decker pinned the Lanesborough police chief badge on Timothy Sorrell.
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Sgt. Glen Decker pins the chief's badge to Timothy Sorrell.
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Sorrell Sworn In As Lanesborough Police Chief

By Andy McKeeveriBerkshires Staff
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Timothy Sorrell is sworn in as chief of police at Town Hall by Town Clerk Ruth Knysh during a short ceremony Friday night. 
LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — When Chris Sorrell got out of the police academy, his big brother Timothy was there to pin a badge on him.
 
On Friday, Sorrell returned the favor.
 
The Connecticut state police trooper, along with Timothy Sorrell's longtime friend Pittsfield Sgt. Glen Decker, pinned the Lanesborough police chief badge on Timothy Sorrell.
 
In a small ceremony with friends and family, Timothy Sorrell was sworn in by Town Clerk Ruth Knysh as the new chief of police. Sorrell fills the shoes of Mark Bashara, who headed the force for the last 12 years. 
 
For the ceremony, Timothy Sorrell asked his brother and Decker to do the honors of pinning the badge on him.
 
Sorrell is a 28-year veteran on the force and took his full-time patrolman position in 1987. He moved up to become a sergeant for 12 years and applied for and nearly got the chief's position. He was the Police Advisory Commission's recommendation then, but the Board of Selectmen opted for Bashara. 
 
He became an investigator, a post he's held for the last 12 years. Outside of the job, he served in a number of roles including holding a seat on the School Committee and is currently the chairman of the recreation committee, and head of the Williamstown Lanesborough Youth Basketball League.
 
"It's been a long 12 years and a long 28 years," Sorrell said after the swearing-in ceremony. 
 
The Board of Selectmen offered him the position in April. He took over on an acting basis and officially took over as chief on July 1. The pinning ceremony with some two dozen friends, family and co-workers capped off his transferring into the new role.

Tags: police chief,   swearing in,   

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Lanesborough Administrator Gives Update on Snow Plowing

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

LANESBOROUGH, Mass.— Five staff members plow about 50 miles of town roads during the winter.

On Monday, Town Administrator Gina Dario updated the Select Board on snow plowing.  The county began to see snow around Thanksgiving and had a significant storm last week.

"I just think it's good for transparency for people to understand sort of some of the process of how they approach plowing of roads," she said.

Fifty miles of roadway is covered by five staff members, often starting at 8 p.m. with staggered shifts until the morning.

"They always start on the main roads, including Route 7, Route 8, the Connector Road, Bull Hill Road, Balance Rock (Road,) and Narragansett (Avenue.) There is cascading, kind of— as you imagine, the arms of the town that go out there isn't a set routine. Sometimes it depends on which person is starting on which shift and where they're going to cover first," Dario explained.

"There are some ensuring that the school is appropriately covered and obviously they do Town Hall and they give Town Hall notice to make sure that we're clear to the public so that we can avoid people slipping and falling."

She added that dirt roads are harder to plow earlier in the season before they freeze 'Or sometimes they can't plow at all because that will damage the mud that is on the dirt roads at that point."

During a light snowstorm, plowers will try to get blacktop roads salted first so they can be maintained quickly.

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